Engineering and Expanding New York's Subway System

The New York City subway, run by MTA New York City Transit, is the largest and one of the oldest subway systems in the U.S. It has 229 route-miles, serving 468 stations, and 842 miles of track. It is behind only Tokyo, Seoul, and Moscow in annual ridership, handling 1.56 billion people per year. And it is the only one of the world's busiest systems that operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, system-wide. That makes repairing, updating, and adding to the system difficult, as it enters its first large-scale build-out since the 1930s. Because it represents such a huge market, suppliers tend to work closely with the MTA in devising equipment and services, which then can become the standard for other, smaller systems. Current projects include the rebuilding of Chambers Street interlocking in lower Manhattan, as well as upgrades of less visible elements such as the East 180th Street yard in the Bronx. A raft of new subway cars, for a total of 1,662 new cars being supplied, are a visible improvement for riders, but if the signaling system, some of whose components date back to the 1930s, causes cars to be delayed, the MTA hears complaints. The MTA's capital plans continue on track for now, the most recent project being the new South Ferry Station in lower Manhattan, which opened in late March 2009. But the $15 billion that has been projected may be in jeopardy as Upstate legislators try to cut some of the funds in favor of projects for their constituents. MTA supporters point out that many of its suppliers are located outside the immediate New York City region, meaning that capital spending benefits are spread around the state.